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Finding the Right Pre-Mixed Diet for Dogs with Food Allergies

By
Mary Straus
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0

Deborah Allen, of Boise, Idaho, feeds a dog food diet that combines a commercial pre-mix with raw ground turkey to her two Labrador Retrievers: Hartford, a highly active, 6-year-old working guide dog who weighs 76 pounds; and Lily, a moderately active, 14-year-old retired guide dog who weighs 53 pounds. Their veterinarian says both dogs are healthy, but they have begun losing weight and developing skin problems in the last few months. Hartford is about 4 pounds and Lily about two pounds under their ideal weights. 

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Allen is limited in what she can feed her dogs due to their food allergies or intolerances. Hartford has digestive problems (vomiting, loose stools) and gets itchy when fed lamb or chicken. He tolerates beef and bison, but has been only fed small amounts. Lily won’t touch beef or bison, and has the same reaction to lamb that Hartford does. She tolerates small amounts of chicken. Hartford can eat ground elk, but Lily reacts to it similarly to lamb. In addition, Allen suspects that both dogs may have problems with grains and possibly flax. She is concerned that her dogs’ skin problems are due to the lack of variety in their diet.

Here is the diet Allen currently feeds her dogs, which she started last March. These amounts are daily totals, split between two meals:

– 1 pound Foster Farms 93 percent lean ground turkey (1/2 pound for Lily)

– 1 dry cup The Honest Kitchen Preference (hydrated with 2 cups of water)

– 2 tablespoons cooked pumpkin

– 1 tablespoon olive oil

– 2 grams salmon oil

– 1 cup of Pure Vita Grain Free Turkey Formula (1/2 cup for Lily)

– Lily gets an occasional raw chicken wing, and Hartford gets dry homemade beef heart bits, but not regularly

Mixed Company
Pre-mixes, such as The Honest Kitchen’s Preference, are designed to provide a complete diet when combined with fresh foods that you add yourself. There are many such products available, but only a few are guaranteed to meet Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO) nutrient guidelines for “complete and balanced” products when fed according to instructions. Few companies provide a complete nutritional analysis of their products; some, in fact, have never done such an analysis.

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Also, instructions for adding foods vary considerably from one company to the next. For example, one tells you to add ¾ cup of oil per 2 pounds of meat, creating a recipe that derives 67 percent of its calories from fat (41 percent of calories are from the oil alone). This is more fat than even working sled dogs need, and is likely to cause digestive upset and even pancreatitis in susceptible dogs. It could also lead to nutritional deficiencies because the non-fat portion is such a small percentage of the diet.

I trust The Honest Kitchen more than most companies when it comes to pre-mixes. The Honest Kitchen provides a complete nutritional analysis of all of its foods. Only Preference is a true pre-mix, incomplete without the addition of fresh foods, though the product literature encourages you to add up to half a cup of “extras” to each dry cup of The Honest Kitchen’s other products. It advises adding 1 to 2 cups of meat (raw or cooked) per 1 dry cup of its Preference mix, as Allen does, but the number of calories provided would vary tremendously depending on the fat content of the meat.

Diet Details
In August, Allen switched from Foster Farms regular ground turkey (with 15 percent fat) to its lean variety (with just 7 percent fat). In October, she noticed that her dogs were losing weight. The difference in calories between the two types of turkey is significant, about 300 calories a day for Hartford and half that much for Lily, which would explain the weight loss. Allen increased the amount of Pure Vita kibble she was feeding, but the dogs are still losing weight.

The amount of protein in this diet is more than adequate. The turkey alone supplies all of the protein that Hartford needs, and most of what Lily should get. Like all meats, turkey is a complete protein source, supplying all essential amino acids as well as taurine (which may be conditionally essential for some dogs).

The fat in this diet would be on the low side without the added oils, especially for Lily, who gets less meat, although not excessively restricted. With the added oils, the diet has an appropriate fat content, about 46 grams per 1,000 calories for Hartford, and a little less for Lily.

While the total amount of fat is fine, the distribution may not be. One-fifth of the total fat in Hartford’s diet and almost one-third in Lily’s diet comes from olive oil, which supplies primarily oleic acid, an omega-9 fatty acid that competes with essential omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids for uptake in the body. Most of the useful omega-3 fatty acids (EPA and DHA) in this diet are supplied by the fish oil supplement (they can also be found in algae). Poultry fat is a good source of omega-6 fatty acids, primarily linoleic acid (LA), while beef, lamb, and other red meats are low in LA.

The amount of omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids is adequate, but the ratio of LA to EPA and DHA is over 16:1 (not counting the added kibble). Linoleic acid is pro-inflammatory, while EPA and DHA are anti-inflammatory. Since omega-6 fatty acids also compete with omega-3 fatty acids for uptake, it is likely that the dogs are not absorbing enough EPA or DHA. This could explain the skin problems that Allen sees in her dogs. Increasing the amount of EPA and DHA and decreasing the amount of olive oil will help to correct this imbalance and may help to resolve the skin issues.

I advised Allen to reduce the amount of olive oil to 1 teaspoon (down from 1 tablespoon) daily, and either increase salmon oil to 5 grams (about a teaspoon) or add 1 teaspoon cod liver oil. This lowers the ratio of LA to EPA and DHA, and removes much of the competing oleic acid, while only slightly reducing the total amounts of fat and calories. The advantage to using cod liver oil is that most supplements provide about 400 IU vitamin D per teaspoon. Recommended amounts of vitamin D for humans have increased in recent years; more may be beneficial for dogs, too.

I recommended that Allen supplement with vitamin E due to the added oils in her diet, which increase the need for vitamin E. Both dogs should get an additional 25 IU vitamin E daily. Since vitamin E is fat-soluble, it’s okay to give larger amounts less often. For example, she could give 200 IU vitamin E once a week rather than 25 IU daily.

The revised diet is slightly lower in calories due to the decrease in the amount of oil. Allen is adding a duck egg a day for Hartford (which he is more likely to tolerate than chicken eggs) and a chicken wing a day for Lily (a chicken egg would be a better choice) to increase calories and variety. She will also include canned salmon in the diet soon, if her dogs can handle it. Both dogs now get 1 teaspoon olive oil and 5 grams salmon oil plus a human multivitamin daily (salmon oil will not be given on days she feeds fish).

Allen could have returned to the higher-fat turkey in place of the new foods, but the increase in omega-6 fatty acids might have contributed to inflammation, and the diet would have been higher in fat than either dog needs. In addition, variety is always preferred to feeding just a single protein source, even though it does not appear that the lack of variety caused the dogs’ problems.

One month after making the above changes, Allen reports, “The dogs are both doing great! Their coats are noticeably more silky, their food-seeking behavior has reduced, they are more energetic, and they are putting on weight. I will probably have to cut back on the kibble soon.”

Mary Straus is the owner of DogAware.com. Contact her via her website if you would like to submit a diet to be critiqued.

Novartis Suspends Production of Interceptor and Sentinel

By
Mary Straus
-
1

If you use these products, you may need to find alternatives.

It seems like every time I turn around these days, I hear about another drug shortage (more on that topic in an upcoming WDJ article). This time, it’s Novartis Animal Health announcing in late December that it has suspended production of Interceptor, Sentinel, and other drugs while its manufacturing facility in Lincoln, Nebraska, undergoes “voluntary” improvements. Numerous human and animal over-the-counter drugs are manufactured at this plant. According to reports, the company hopes to know in January when production will be resumed.

If you currently use either of these products, you may need to find a substitute, at least temporarily. Interceptor is a monthly heartworm preventive medication; it should be easy to switch to Heartgard (or generic equivalent), Revolution, or the newer Advantage Multi. Be sure to purchase these from a reliable source to avoid potentially ineffective counterfeit products. See “When Buying Veterinary Drugs Online, Look for Accredited Sites,” (WDJ June 2011)

Sentinel is a combination of Interceptor (milbemycin oxime) and Program (lufenuron), an insect growth regulator that prevents fleas that bite your dog from producing viable offspring, and therefore can be useful in combating a flea infestation. Program is manufactured by Novartis and is therefore almost certainly one of the other products whose production has been suspended. If you don’t have fleas, you don’t need to use lufenuron.

If you do have a flea problem, you can switch to flea and tick products that contain their own insect growth regulators. Advantage II and Advantix II use pyriproxyfen (Nylar), while Frontline Plus and Certifect use S-methoprene (Precor). For more information on these products, see “New Flea and Tick Products Hit the Market” (WDJ December 2011).

News source:

Novartis temporarily suspends production of Interceptor, Sentinel

It’s Always Tick Season Somewhere…

By
Nancy Kerns
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0

And it’s peak tick season where I live right now. The ticks are so bad in some of the areas where I typically walk Otto and Tito (formerly Peanut) that I just have to avoid those trails for a few months. Otherwise, even with the dogs wearing a fresh application of Advantix and me spending a feverish hour when we get home going over them with a fine-toothed comb (literally – I use a flea comb), I end up finding one or two latched onto Otto, engorged with blood. It’s always Otto, too; Tito is small and his coat is short; I can find even the tiny deer ticks on him easily. But Otto is large and his coat is thick and wiry; the ticks can hide from even my flea comb rather easily.

Once upon a time, I used to think ticks were just gross — and of course painful for the dog. But I’ve become increasingly aware of the number of people who have been infected with Lyme disease from tick bites – and in just the past year, newly aware of the tick-borne diseases that dogs can get from tick bites.

Lots of veterinarians today are using SNAP 4Dx tests – an in-house blood test that can detect heartworm infection as well as infection with canine anaplasmosis and canine monocytic ehrlichiosis. Both diseases are caused by organisms carried by ticks. All of the tick-borne diseases have the ability to lie dormant for months and even years in a dog’s body, in what’s called a sub-clinical stage, until something (age or another illness) reduces the effectiveness of the dog’s immune system, and allows the infection to suddenly bloom into a chronic stage of active infection and illness. Allowing ticks to bite your dog means opening the window to possible infection with one of these difficult-to-treat diseases.

Because of this, and because our locals trails are so infested with ticks, I do use pesticides on Otto and Tito, in addition to assiduous post-walk grooming and inspections, and avoiding the most-infested trails. I’ve heard about numerous less-toxic preparations that can help ward off ticks – but I’ve never heard of any remedy that works as well as the commercial spot-on products against ticks. But surely I haven’t heard of EVERY remedy – and anything that’s effective that I could add to my tick-protection protocol would be welcome.

What do you do that really works against ticks?

 

 

Photos and Updates are the Best Part of an Online Community

By
Nancy Kerns
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0

You can ask the powers-that-be at our publishing headquarters: I had to be dragged kicking and screaming to posting on Facebook and writing blog posts. But one thing keeps me coming back to check the blog and the WDJ Facebook page: I really enjoy seeing posts that show or describe the progress that our readers have made with their dogs. It doesn’t matter if they report on a health or training issue; it’s just really rewarding to communicate with like-minded owners who are as concerned (some would say obsessed) or in love with their dogs as we are. It’s even better if we’ve met the dog, or shared his or her story at some point in the magazine.

So share your stories! These winter nights are long and just MADE for telling good dog stories. Post a picture, too. Tell us what you’re working on or what you’ve already accomplished. 

Best Interactive Dog Toy and Puzzle Game – “Dog Twister”

By
Nancy Kerns
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1

Swedish dog owner Nina Ottosson first marketed some of her puzzles and games for dogs in Sweden in 1993; we first heard about them (and reviewed the original wood versions) in 2008. Since then, probably in a defensive response to a number of cheap plastic knockoffs of her designs, Ottosson has developed a line of high-quality plastic toys, though the original, beautiful wood models that are made in Sweden are still available. The wood ones are sturdy and gorgeous – and more expensive. The plastic ones are also quite rugged, holding up to all sorts of clawing and even being picked up and dropped and continuing to work perfectly.

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We tested one of the knockoffs, as well as Ottosson’s plastic “Dog Twister” model; there was no comparison. Our dogs were finished with the knockoff in minutes; but many designs of the Ottosson toys, like the Dog Twister, are designed with several levels of difficulty and continue to provide a challenge for dogs after months of play. In addition, Ottosson makes more complex toys and simpler toys; as her website says, “Whether you have a ‘Forrest Gump’ or an ‘Albert Einstein’, there is a Nina Ottosson game design to suit every dog!” (Even our young cats got into the action, using their claws to manipulate the pieces; Ottosson indicates which of the toys are appropriate for cats!)

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These toys are great for occupying puppies, giving non-ambulatory or post-surgical dogs something to do, or just amusing yourself while amusing your dog!

We purchased from Amazon.com, but the toys are available from a number of online retailers, listed on the website below.

Dog Twister, Plastic – $42

Nina Ottosson Dog Activity Toys
Karlskoga, Sweden
46-586-30034
nina-ottosson.com

Best Freeze Dried Dog Treats

By
Nancy Kerns
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0

There is a short list of attributes that we look for in a treat: It should be mostly or all-meat (that’s the definition of high-value, in the opinion of most dogs); it should be dehydrated or freeze-dried (to make it convenient and not greasy in a pocket); it should be small (so we can feed a lot of them without filling up or boring the dog). That’s it!

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Bravo!, maker of top-quality frozen raw diets, recently introduced a line of freeze-dried meat treats that meet all of our selection criteria. They come in four varieties: all-beef “hot dogs,” turkey, buffalo, and “Trail Mix,” which contains those three plus tiny cubes of freeze-dried cheese. We like the latter best, because the variety seems to hold our dogs’ attention longer. Bravo! uses only domestic sources of responsibly raised meats. We purchased from a local pet supply store; retailers are listed on Bravo’s website. Bravo! treats are also sold by online retailers such as cleanrun.com.

Bravo! Trail Mix – 4 oz. $10

Bravo!, LLC
Vernon, Connecticut
(866) 922-9222
bravorawdiet.com

Environmentally Friendly Poop Bags

By
Nancy Kerns
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0

Dog poop presents the environmentalist with a real problem. We would hazard a guess that most of us do the worst possible thing: use a plastic bag to pick up poo, and then throw it in a garbage can, bound for a landfill somewhere.

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Here is an environmentally responsible alternative: bags made of polyvinyl alcohol, which you use to pick up poop and dispose in a toilet. Flush Puppies feel and perform like plastic, but when immersed in water (as they would be if flushed down a toilet), they completely degrade into water and carbon dioxide in about four days. They are safe and approved in waste water treatment systems and septic tanks. Flush Puppies contain no petroleum products (like plastics), so if you are closer to a trash can than a toilet, you can feel better about disposing them instead of a plastic bag, which takes much longer to biodegrade.

We really like these large, sturdy bags – and so did all the dog-owning friends we gave them to as stocking stuffers! The only complaint we heard was that it was difficult to tie a knot in the bags. The maker actually advises against knotting the bags if you intend to flush them; the knot takes much longer to break down in water. We found that the bags contained poo odor sufficiently to finish our walks if we just twisted the neck of the bag and held it by the twisted section. We purchased from Amazon.com; retailers are listed on the Flush Puppies website.

Flush Puppies – 60 bags for $9

Pawesome Pet Products, LLC
Boca Raton, Florida
(855) 766-7224
flushpuppies.com

Download The Full January 2012 Issue PDF

By
Nancy Kerns
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0
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Rabies is Still a Deadly Threat

By
Nancy Kerns
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0

Headline news over the weekend: South Caroline woman contracts rabies; first human case in that state in 50 years. This comes on the heels of hearing news from East Coast animal shelters that they’ve been seeing cases of rabies in cats. All in all, pretty alarming news. Today and in the U.S., most people take it for granted that rabies is a distant, old-timey threat, sort of like smallpox. But rabies has not been eradicated – far from it. It’s still common in wildlife, and a threat to any unvaccinated mammal who comes into contact with an infected species.

There is plenty of evidence that vaccination against rabies can cause health problems in a certain small percentage of sensitive individual dogs, and that, by law, the vaccination is over-administered to dogs. That’s one of the reasons we so avidly support the work of the Rabies Challenge Fund, which seeks to provide legitimate studies that could be used to help lobby for a change in state laws allowing for less-frequent vaccination. But none of this should be any justification for not vaccinating dogs.

I only mentioning this last line because I’ve been seeing frequent postings of articles about overvaccination followed by informal discussions or comments from people saying things like, “I don’t vaccinate any of my animals anymore, and they are far healthier for it!” That’s a dangerous position to take – and I’d guess, one with more potential for harm than overvaccination.

Of course we don’t want our dogs to be overvaccinated. But with rabies, no vaccination at all is worse. The disease is 99.9 percent fatal. And it’s staging a current comeback on our shores right now.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/12/17/us-rabies-idUSTRE7BG01T20111217

http://www.cdc.gov/rabies/

Dog Gear of the Year 2011

By
Nancy Kerns
-
0

Every year we come across a few dog-related items that make an immediate and/or lasting impact on our dogs or our dog-care regimen, and we feature them here. This year, we also asked our readers, via the Whole Dog Journal Facebook page, for their nominations for “Gear of the Year.” Some of the items here are their selections. 

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Nina Ottosson Dog Activity Toys

Swedish dog owner Nina Ottosson first marketed some of her puzzles and games for dogs in Sweden in 1993; we first heard about them (and reviewed the original wood versions) in 2008. Since then, probably in a defensive response to a number of cheap plastic knockoffs of her designs, Ottosson has developed a line of high-quality plastic toys, though the original, beautiful wood models that are made in Sweden are still available. The wood ones are sturdy and gorgeous – and more expensive. The plastic ones are also quite rugged, holding up to all sorts of clawing and even being picked up and dropped and continuing to work perfectly.

175

We tested one of the knockoffs, as well as Ottosson’s plastic “Dog Twister” model; there was no comparison. Our dogs were finished with the knockoff in minutes; but many designs of the Ottosson toys, like the Dog Twister, are designed with several levels of difficulty and continue to provide a challenge for dogs after months of play. In addition, Ottosson makes more complex toys and simpler toys; as her website says, “Whether you have a ‘Forrest Gump’ or an ‘Albert Einstein’, there is a Nina Ottosson game design to suit every dog!” (Even our young cats got into the action, using their claws to manipulate the pieces; Ottosson indicates which of the toys are appropriate for cats!)

These toys are great for occupying puppies, giving non-ambulatory or post-surgical dogs something to do, or just amusing yourself while amusing your dog!

175

We purchased from Amazon.com, but the toys are available from a number of online retailers, listed on the website below.
dog twister, plastic – $42

Nina Ottosson Dog Activity Toys
Karlskoga, Sweden
46-586-30034
nina-ottosson.com

Car Seat Covers

The last time we bought a car seat cover meant especially for protecting the car from the wear and tear (and moisture and dirt and hair) of dogs, IT smelled so bad that we returned it without ever trying its fit in the car. (We did let it air out, fully unfolded, for two days on a clothesline ; it still stunk.) We’ve been reluctant to try another model since then; instead, we’ve habitually covered the back seat with a large bed sheet.

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A few months ago, we tried again. We purchased the Solvit Deluxe Bench Seat Cover, a machine-washable (polyester with a suede-like finish) cover with a water-resistant backing. It installed easily, with adjustable straps that go around the headrests, and lined openings for the seat belts to pass through. (There are some other straps and hooks under the cover that are meant to pass under the cushions and fasten under the seat somewhere, but our car’s seat is fastened right to the floor. We didn’t use those straps, and yet it doesn’t seem to matter; the cover stays put anyway.)

We love it. First, because it didn’t smell bad. Also, no moisture from our wet, muddy dogs passes through to the seats. Hair and stickers stick to the cover, rather than the car – and yet, when we took the dirty cover out of the car and shook it, most of the hair and stickers flew off. The cover looked so presentable after the shaking, that we didn’t wash it that first time; we just put it back into the car!

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We purchased from Amazon.com, but a list of other retailers can be found on the Solvit website.

Solvit Deluxe Bench Seat Cover
– $33

Solvit Products
Arlington, Texas
(866) 676-5848
solvitproducts.com

We’re always looking for items that satisfy our dogs’ need to chew – and that are as safe as possible. The animal hooves that are sold in pet supply stores are often too hard (risking broken teeth); and many rawhide, tendon, and “pizzles” chews present a risk of being swallowed in large enough chunks that bowl obstruction becomes a concern. We’re not fans of any of those green chews, which contain a ton of wheat byproducts.  But antlers have become a recent obsession with our dogs. They are hard, but not quite as hard as cow hooves, and they last a lot longer than any rawhide-type chews. Best of all, they have that animal-product appeal for dogs – and the animals that provided them don’t have to die (deer and elk shed their antlers annually, and they are collected for this purpose). 

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There are a number of companies selling deer antler chews. We suggest looking for those that are sourced in the U.S., from animals that have been organically raised. Always take away any chew item from your dog when it is chewed down to a size that could be swallowed.
We purchased from Amazon.com, but antler chews can also be purchased directly from the Chasing Our Tails website.

Deer Rack Snack – $9

Chasing Our Tails, Inc.
Hudson, New Hampshire
(866) 967-0152
chasingourtails.com

Leedz

We’re obsessed with leashes. Our favorites are simple, strong, and well-made of quality materials. And they have to feel good in the hand. Leedz leashes meet all those criteria – especially the feel in the hand. They are made of a particularly silky synthetic rope that stays smooth even after lots of daily use. Each has a generously sized loop handle.

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Leedz are made by Purple Pebble (a pet products company that also offers some very nice fleecy “Cuddle Mats” for use alone or in a crate). They are offered in two diameters: the 5/8” is recommended for big dogs and comes in 2’, 4’, and 6’ lengths; the 6’ length is available with either a snap on the end or a slip noose. The 3/8” comes in a 6’ length with a snap end or a 4’ length with a slip end.

Leedz – $23

Purple Pebble
West Milford, New Jersey
(201) 444-7439
purplepebble.com

Freeze Dried Meat Treats

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There is a short list of attributes that we look for in a treat: It should be mostly or all-meat (that’s the definition of high-value, in the opinion of most dogs); it should be dehydrated or freeze-dried (to make it convenient and not greasy in a pocket); it should be small (so we can feed a lot of them without filling up or boring the dog). That’s it!

Bravo!, maker of top-quality frozen raw diets, recently introduced a line of freeze-dried meat treats that meet all of our selection criteria. They come in four varieties: all-beef “hot dogs,” turkey, buffalo, and “Trail Mix,” which contains those three plus tiny cubes of freeze-dried cheese. We like the latter best, because the variety seems to hold our dogs’ attention longer. Bravo! uses only domestic sources of responsibly raised meats. We purchased from a local pet supply store; retailers are listed on Bravo’s website. Bravo! treats are also sold by online retailers such as cleanrun.com.

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Bravo! Trail Mix – 4 oz. $10

Bravo!, LLC
Vernon, Connecticut
(866) 922-9222
bravorawdiet.com

Non-Plastic Poop Bags

Dog poop presents the environmentalist with a real problem. We would hazard a guess that most of us do the worst possible thing: use a plastic bag to pick up poo, and then throw it in a garbage can, bound for a landfill somewhere.

Here is an environmentally responsible alternative: bags made of polyvinyl alcohol, which you use to pick up poop and dispose in a toilet. Flush Puppies feel and perform like plastic, but when immersed in water (as they would be if flushed down a toilet), they completely degrade into water and carbon dioxide in about four days. They are safe and approved in waste water treatment systems and septic tanks. Flush Puppies contain no petroleum products (like plastics), so if you are closer to a trash can than a toilet, you can feel better about disposing them instead of a plastic bag, which takes much longer to biodegrade.

146

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We really like these large, sturdy bags – and so did all the dog-owning friends we gave them to as stocking stuffers! The only complaint we heard was that it was difficult to tie a knot in the bags. The maker actually advises against knotting the bags if you intend to flush them; the knot takes much longer to break down in water. We found that the bags contained poo odor sufficiently to finish our walks if we just twisted the neck of the bag and held it by the twisted section. We purchased from Amazon.com; retailers are listed on the Flush Puppies website.

Flush Puppies – 60 bags for $9

Pawesome Pet Products, LLC
Boca Raton, Florida
(855) 766-7224
flushpuppies.com

Every Dog Adoption is Like a Box of Chocolates

By
Pat Miller, CBCC-KA, CPDT-KA
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0

The first adult dogs I adopted after beginning my animal protection career at the Marin Humane Society was Mandy, a tri-color Rough Collie who was surrendered to the shelter by her owner at eight years of age because she was leaking urine – she had spay incontinence. I am a sucker for Collies (my childhood companion and confidante was a Collie), and I offered to foster her, brush out her matted fur, and medicate the urine burns on her legs. She came home with me and laid down on the living room floor as if she’d lived there forever. Medication for her incontinence quickly resolved her leaking problem, and she stayed with me for the rest of her life, until she died of a stroke at age 13.

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Few (if any) dogs will arrive in a new home and immediately understand and follow all the house rules, get along with every member of the family (human, canine, feline, etc.), and display perfect health as they consume and perfectly digest whatever food they are given. Rather, all dogs present their new families with unique health issues and behaviors; you never know what you are going to get along with the darling face you fell in love with at the shelter. Your new family member may need medical care, remedial training, and/or socialization in order to adjust and adapt to their new circumstances.

Here are the short stories of our current adult-adoption canine family:

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We adopted Dubhy (pronounced “Duffy,” means “Dark” in Gaelic) a Scottish Terrier, when he was about 6 months old. He was in a shelter A former stray, he’s now 11 years old. Dubhy actually came with no noticeable behavior challenges, but became reactive to other dogs as he matured.

Lucy (short for “Footloose and Fancy Free”), our Cardigan Corgi, was surrendered by her former owner to my husband’s shelter (Paul is the executive director of the Humane Society of Washington County, Maryland), when she was about 7 months old. I’m sure it was because her high energy level (in a home with small children) was problematic. I had long wanted a Corgi. She arrived with high energy, borderline canine compulsive behavior (spinning), and a shrill voice she didn’t hesitate to use. Living on a farm, doing barn chores, and going for daily hikes quickly resolved the energy/compulsive behavior issues. Lucy is now about 8 years old. We live with – and manage – the voice.

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We call Bonnie (Bonnie Wee Lass) a “Scorgidoodle” – we think she’s a mix of Scottie, Corgi, and Poodle. We adopted her when she was about 6 months old; she’s now 6 years old. Bonnie was surrendered to the shelter by her owners because they couldn’t housetrain her. She was a submissive urinator. Careful management and modification has reduced her urination incidents to a rare occasion.

Missy, our Australian Shepherd, was all of 8 years old when we adopted her; she’s now 13. We were Missy’s fourth home in 12 months. I suspect she had one long-term owner who had to give her up for some reason, and the separation issues she demonstrated within the first 24 hours in our home likely resulted in her being passed from home to home until she landed with us. Fortunately her behavior is at the “distress” end of the scale, not the “anxiety” end; it manifests only as vocalization (barking). Because I work from my home office, and we have no nearby neighbors, we are able to easily manage this behavior.

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Scooter, our Pomeranian, was also about 8 years old when we adopted him; he’s now 10. Scooter was on the euthanasia list at our shelter after failing part of his behavioral assessment by the shelter staff; he very fiercely guarded resources. The staff knew I had taken an interest in the little guy, and contacted me after the behavior assessment.

As it turned out, while he may act fierce from time to time, Scooter has superb bite inhibition – which means that it doesn’t hurt when he bites. Having been on the receiving end of his ferocity on more than one occasion, I can attest to the fact that there is no pressure from his teeth when he puts his mouth on your skin. It’s a simple matter to manage his resource guarding by not pestering him when he has a valuable resource in his possession, or by trading it for a high-value treat if he has something that we need to take away (which rarely happens).

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Scooter had another troubling habit when he first arrived in our house; he frequently peed in the house, lifting his leg on anything and everything. Fortunately, a discussion of the problem with our veterinarian and an examination resulted in a quick resolution of this “training problem.” After having surgery to remove a cherry-sized bladder stone, which was preventing him from fully emptying his bladder outside (and causing him to almost stand on his head to pee), Scooter stopped peeing in the house. Can you imagine how tragic it would have been for him if he had been living with someone who punished him for his “stubbornness”? His story is a good reminder to always give a dog the benefit of the doubt – and look for factors beyond the dog’s control – when problematic behavior persists.

Why Adopting an Adult Dog Has its Advantages

By
Pat Miller, CBCC-KA, CPDT-KA
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So, you’ve recently adopted an adolescent or adult dog, or you’re planning to adopt one from a rescue group or shelter in the near future. Good for you! It generally takes adult dogs a lot longer to get adopted than those irresistible, pudgy puppies – even when they are calmer, better-socialized, house-trained, and past the “chew everything in sight” stage. Shelter staffers often shake their heads as families pass up ideal, kid-friendly adult dogs in favor of pups of some highly inappropriate breed or type, just because they are puppies.

family dog

There are a multitude of benefits when you bring an adult dog into your family. You don’t have to deal with those nasty-sharp puppy teeth. And because your dog has her adult teeth, she is less likely to chew everything within her reach. If not already housetrained (and many are), a mature dog at least has the physical ability to hold bowels and bladder for longer periods of time, and can usually learn appropriate bathroom habits quickly, with proper management and training.

Plus, an adult needs to be fed only twice a day, whereas young puppies need lunch as well as breakfast and dinner. And healthy, mature dogs are capable of more physical activity than puppies, so if you’re looking for a ready-made exercise partner, you don’t have to wait months for your running buddy to accompany you as you prepare for your next 10k run. As an added benefit, you have that feel-good feeling that comes with adopting a dog who might otherwise not find her forever home.

I do not, by any means, intend to imply that adopting an adult dog is all smooth sailing. Many shelter dogs settle into their new homes without a ripple, but some arrive with minor behavioral challenges, and others carry with them a significant amount of baggage. Don’t despair! If you’re grounded in the reality that no dog is perfect from the get-go, and you’re prepared and poised to help your new dog learn your household rules, conventions, and codes of conduct starting on day 1, his potential for success in your family is very good.

Make Your Own Evaluation of Your Adoption Prospects

Most shelters do some sort of behavior evaluation of the dogs in their care, so you may be warned about potentially inappropriate behaviors. This may come in the form of answers on a questionnaire (if your new dog had been surrendered to the shelter by her previous owner), or notes from a staff member or a volunteer based on their observations. If you don’t allow yourself to get distracted by the shelter’s commotion, you’ll have the opportunity to make your own observations about the potential adoptee during an introduction session. Behaviors like lifting his leg in the get-acquainted room, counter-surfing to snatch toys or treats off the table, or leaping into your lap when you sit on a chair are likely to be repeated in his new environment.

Again: Don’t let these sorts of minor transgressions dissuade you from adopting the dog. All of these are typical for untrained dogs – and absolutely expected from untrained puppies!

What if your new adoptee does seem perfect? While that would be nice, it’s also possible that you will experience a “honeymoon period” with your new family member, one that may range anywhere from a few days to several months. Unforeseen behaviors may manifest over time, as the dog tests new behavioral strategies and discovers which ones are reinforced (by you, by other family members, by visitors, or by the environment), or as she recovers from the recent traumas in her life. She may become bolder about engaging in behaviors that were temporarily shut-down by the stress of her recent life experiences.

If you’re prepared for unwanted behaviors to surface, it will be easier to work through them. If tempted to give up when poor manners emerge, keep in mind that your adoptee’s previous owner(s) already gave up on her at least once, if not several times.

Be Prepared to Manage Behavioral Problems

The first, almost universal answer to the question of handling behavior problems is management, hand-in-hand with a medical exam.

These days, many shelter dogs come with a free “well-pet exam.” Commonly, private veterinarians in practice near a shelter generously offer their services at a discount for dogs adopted from the shelter or rescue. Take advantage of the offer as soon as possible. If your dog doesn’t come with a free check-up, make an appointment for the veterinarian you’ve interviewed and selected to be your dog’s doctor.

It’s not uncommon for a previously undetected health problem that could lead to behavior issues to be identified at this time. For example, my husband and I adopted an adult Pomeranian, who lifted his leg and peed in the house – a lot! The veterinarian who provided a reduced-cost exam diagnosed a bladder stone, the removal of which quickly resolved Scooter’s house soiling behavior.

Management’s role is also critical in modifying your adopted dog’s behavior. The more often she gets to practice (and be reinforced for) an inappropriate behavior, the harder it is to modify that behavior down the road. The behavior becomes a well-practiced habit; she’ll be convinced that it will pay off if she just tries hard enough, or often enough. Don’t wait “to give her time to settle in.” Start reinforcing the behaviors you like the most (such as polite sitting) ASAP.

Common (Mis)Behaviors in Adult Rescue Dogs

Here are some common misbehaviors you might find in adult shelter dogs, along with some tips on how to work with them. If you have to prioritize a list of undesirable behaviors that came with your adopted dog, I’d suggest you start with the first two that follow: house soiling and separation anxiety, as they are two that are most likely to cause your dog to lose her happy home, yet again.

House Soiling – Some adult shelter dogs are already housetrained. Some are not. Depending on how house-proud you are, house soiling may be a minor annoyance, or a major affront to your sensibilities. When you bring your shelter dog home, assume she isn’t housetrained, and put her on an express puppy housetraining schedule: Under constant supervision (with the help of baby gates, closed doors, and leashes) or in a crate or exercise pen. Of course, you must crate train her if she isn’t already, in order to take advantage of this valuable management tool. If you just toss her in her crate and leave, you risk teaching her to hate her crate. (See “The Benefits of Crate Training Your Dog from an Early Age,” January 2011.)

Take her outside every hour on the hour for the first day or two, and reward and praise on the spot when she eliminates. If she seems to be getting the idea, over the course of a few days, gradually give her more house freedom and extend the time between trips outside. If gradual freedom results in house accidents, go back to more supervision (and clean the soiled spots well with an enzymatic cleaner designed for cleaning up animal waste).

If you catch her mid-accident, cheerfully interrupt her with an “Oops! Outside!” Take her to her potty spot – and make a mental note to amp up your supervision and increase her bathroom opportunities. Do not make a big deal, or you risk teaching her it’s not safe to go in your presence. Good luck getting her to go to the bathroom on leash if that happens!

At first, don’t crate your dog for more than four hours at a time. That might mean hiring a dog walker if no one in the family can come home and let her out at lunchtime. Eight hours at night is acceptable, as long as she is crated where you can hear her (preferably in your bedroom) if she wakes up and asks to go out. If your dog soils her crate or exercise pen during a reasonable period of confinement, you have a bigger challenge ahead of you. You may need to reverse crate train, which means putting her in the crate for short periods, only when you know she is “empty,” and having her under your direct supervision when she’s not crated.

If your dog is having inexplicable accidents despite your excellent management, head back to the vet to determine if she has a urinary tract infection (which makes it impossible for her to hold her urine for very long), loose stools (which would make it impossible to hold her bowel movements for long), or some other condition that makes it difficult or impossible for her to be housetrained.

“Marking” is a different behavior from simple housesoiling. It is sometimes (but not always) resolved by neutering. Persistent marking can be caused by stress. If that’s the case with your shelter dog, removing as much stress as possible from his life may help. You may need to engage the services of a qualified behavior professional who uses positive reinforcement methods. Belly-bands and “PeeKeepers” (see peekeeper.com) are useful house-preserving tools to use on your dog while you try to modify marking behavior. (For more about dogs who “mark” indoors, see “Ways to Combat Your Dog’s Indoor Urine-Marking,” September 2009.)

Separation anxiety – Full-blown separation anxiety can be an extremely challenging behavior to live with, manage, and modify. For starters, most dogs with significant separation or isolation issues don’t tolerate a crate well, so the “confine them to keep them out of trouble” option isn’t available.

The good news is that many of these dogs actually have separation (have to be with the one person the dog has connected to) or isolation (doesn’t like to be left alone) distress, rather than true anxiety. The intensity of canine behavior with these conditions is on a continuum from low level intensity (unhappy, but calms down after a reasonably short time, without destroying the house) to extreme panic (dog injures himself, vocalizes non-stop for hours on end, and causes massive destruction to household). If your shelter adoptee is demonstrating anxiety on the extreme end of the continuum, a trip to the veterinarian for anti-anxiety medications is in order. This will make life easier for her, and for you, while you work to modify her behaviors. (For more information about separation anxiety and separation distress, see “How to Manage Separation Anxiety in Dogs,” July 2008.)

Dr. Karen Overall’s very detailed, “Protocol for Relaxation” is useful for modifying separation/isolation distress. A downloadable, auditory version can be found at championofmyheart.com/relaxation-protocol-mp3-files.

Vocalizing – There are many different kinds of canine vocalizations: barking, whining, howling, yelping, growling, and more. You may not want to stop all of your dog’s noisemaking, but there may be some you’d prefer to minimize. It’s important that you learn and understand what each one means before simply trying to make them all go away. There may even be some you decide you’d like to reinforce! (For more about training your dog to be quieter, see “Modifying Your Dog’s Barking Behavior,” July 2007.)

Chewing – If you think adopting an adult dog is guaranteed to save you from chewing disasters, think again. While puppies are the masters of chewing behavior, dogs really do chew throughout their lives. If a dog has been well managed, he will develop appropriate chew-preferences and be reasonably trustworthy around your possessions. If he was allowed to run amuck as a pup and chew whatever he wanted, then nothing in your home is safe.

Of course, you have no way of knowing which you may have, so until she proves otherwise, you’ll need to assume that your new dog might chew anything she can get her teeth into. While you’re supervising and managing her behavior for housetraining purposes in her early days with you, keep an eagle eye out for indications of inappropriate chewing (while, of course, providing her with appropriate chew objects).

In relatively short order you should figure out if you’re home free on the chewing issue, or if you’ll need to completely overhaul her mouth behavior management and redirection. For a long-term chew-training protocol, see “Dogs and Puppies Chew for a Number of Reasons,” in the August 2007 issue.

Note: If chewing is accompanied by other undesirable behaviors such as general destruction, barking, and aversion to crating, consider separation or isolation anxiety as possibilities.

Jumping up – Remember, your dog’s jumping up has nothing to do with dominance. (See “De-bunking the “Alpha Dog” Theory,” in the December 2011 issue). She’s probably either trying to greet you, get you to pay attention to her, or perhaps seeking reassurance, if she’s stressed or frightened.

The answer to this training challenge is to make sure that no one reinforces her for jumping up. Make sure that every person who wants to greet the dog is prepared to turn his or her back and step away from her when she jumps.

Next, reinforce “sit” very generously, with high-value treats, to help this polite deference behavior become her default choice (her first behavior option – the one she chooses when she isn’t sure what to do) and make sure everyone gives her attention for sitting. (See “Train Your Dog to Greet People,” May 2008.) If she’s jumping up for reassurance, determine what is stressing her and make that stressor go away until you can help her become comfortable with it.

Pulling on Leash – Lots of dogs pull on leash. As annoying as it might be, don’t take it personally – and don’t blame dominance for this one, either! Dogs who pull just want to get where they want to go, and they want to get there faster than you do. If you want her to walk politely on leash, reinforce her generously when there’s no tension on the leash, and stop moving forward when the leash tightens.

If there are times when you know you won’t have time for the “stop and wait for loose leash” dance – for example, if you want her to jog with you – use a different kind of collar or harness that will let her know, “In this outfit you are allowed to pull.”

For more information about teaching your dog to walk on a loose leash, see “Good Dog Walking,” March 2007.

There Might Be More

There’s a good chance you will encounter other behaviors that we haven’t covered above. In every case, there is a solution to be found that can help your dog become the well-behaved companion you want her to be. You can read good books and search for answers online (and in the WDJ archives!).

Remember to look for positive solutions; you want your new dog to like you, trust you, and want to be with you. You may need to consult a qualified positive behavior professional to help you find answers. As you research the behavior and search for answers, keep these important reminders in your head at all times: Be gentle. Be clear. Be consistent. Be persistent. Be positive. Most of all, for your adopted dog’s sake, be her forever person.

Pat Miller, CBCC-KA, CPDT-KA, is WDJ’s Training Editor. Author of numerous books on positive dog training, she lives in Fairplay, Maryland, site of her Peaceable Paws training center, where she offers dog training classes and courses for trainers.  

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